Why does eBay permit so many listings for safety recalled items?
 
Specifically, these Ikea children's wall lamps. I bought some myself. They lack the safety components to secure the cords to prevent the strangulation hazard beside beds, cribs, playpens, play areas, etc. The US Consumer Safety Product Commission and Canada Health issued a joint recall on these models years ago, so they are technically an internationally regulated item (?), and I think I read the recall specifically prohibits any resale of them by vendors other than the original manufacturer. But yet I constantly see them listed for sale here on eBay and other places, not just online, but even in Goodwill stores.
eBay apparently does not have a built-in firewall to prevent listing of safety recalled items. Does anyone know if it was considered but dismissed?
slippinjimmy
·2 years agoThe only way for eBay to make sure a recalled item n ever gets listed and that would be to manually screen every listing as they are listed and then also screen manually every listing revision.
To do that eBay would probably have to add 5 - 10,000 new employees and instead of listings being indexed within 24 hours it could take weeks.
The alternative is to screen for keywords and other indicators but that is far from 100% accurate, many slip by especially if sellers were engaging in "tricks" (which they already do) to get past the screening. Of course the tighter the screening the more often errors would be made with allowable items being taken down left and right.
simba6
·2 years agoThere are so many items it's hard to keep track of them all. Most people survived childhood without secured lamp cords.